Trump: 'Why Do We Want ... People From Shithole Countries?'

In this Jan. 9, 2018 file photo, President Donald Trump listens during a meeting with lawmakers on immigration policy in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

(Newser)
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“What do we want Haitians here for?” the Los Angeles Times quotes President Trump as saying during a meeting Thursday, as per two sources briefed on the meeting. “Why do we want all these people from Africa here? Why do we want all these people from shithole countries?" Two sources provided the Washington Post with a similar quote. Trump reportedly made the comment while meeting with senators about a bipartisan deal on immigration. It was suggested by Republican Sen. Lindsay Graham and Democratic Sen. Richard Durbin that protections for immigrants from Africa, Haiti, and El Salvador could be restored in exchange for $1.5 billion for the border wall and eliminating the visa lottery system. Trump rejected that idea, saying the US should focus on getting immigrants from places like Norway.

The White House didn't deny Trump made the reported remarks, instead issuing a statement that he would "always fight for the American people." CNN reporter Kaitlain Collins tweets that White House staff aren't concerned about the "shithole" comment, as they believe Trump's base will approve of it. Meanwhile, Democrats are condemning the remarks. "This is racism, plain and simple, and we need to call it that," Democratic Rep. Tim Walz tweets. "My Republican colleagues need to call it that too." The Times reports the incident shows how hard it will be to secure a deal for Dreamers. Aides say Trump seemed interested in a deal earlier Thursday but had lost that interest by the time of the meeting. And a legislative aide to the president said afterward that a deal is far off.

A good and hard-working man once told me: "According to our government, the only culture in the world not worth saving is ours."

factscount

Jan 17, 2018 10:29 AM CST

America has always led the world in taking care of immigrants and indigents. It has been because America was economically sound by having Capitalistic ideals and hard working people. This system worked until Socialism crept in greater numbers into this government. There is less money, more is having to be borrowed just to keep running, more jobs were going elsewhere until Trump came along and started an agenda of getting us back to solvency. If we continued to become majority Socialists, the USA would lose its world status economically and many citizens would actually starve, not to mention the millions of people in foreign countries who would forcibly lose our support for lack of ability to do so. Socialists claim Capitalism is bad, but cannot for the life of them explain how Socialism can survive without it. They depend on the Capitalist engine that provides them the help and support for those who need it, but claim Socialism is better simply because they distribute this extra wealth. Socialism does nothing to earn this wealth and can only spend what it collects from Capitalism.

Robert

Jan 13, 2018 3:16 PM CST

I think the bigger point is that we should be using metrics to decide where we want people coming in from. If Haitians find employment at greater numbers than Canadians, we should bring in more Haitians. This would be the best way and fairest way to have an immigration plan. That way if your lazy cousin who immigrated from Norway doesn't want to work, he will be pressured by his entire community. It is a win win.